Pads for polishing, painting, sandpapering and the like



L. G. HUDSON Jan. 26, 1960 PADS FOR POLISHING, PAINTING, SAND-PAPERING AND THE LIKE Filed May 11 1956 bees United States Patent PADs FOR POLISHING, PAINTING, SAND- PAPERING AND THE LIKE Leslie Gordon Hudson, Epping, England Application May 11, 1956, Serial No. 584,306

2 Claims. (Cl. 15-133) The invention relates to pads for polishing, painting, sand-papering and the like.

- The invention is of particular application to pads of the kind in which a polishing, abrading or like surface, hereinafter referred to as a covering, is applied to a backing or supporting element to which the handle is secured. Pads of this kind are known, but they suffer inter alia from the disadvantages that the covering cannot be changed quickly and conveniently, and that the covering being loosely and haphazardly applied does not present a flat and even surface for the application of the polish, lacquer, paint or the like.

According to the invention, the pad comprises essentially a supporting element, advantageously in the form of a flat, curved or cylindrical metal tray, a covering for the outer under surface of the supporting element made of a material of a kind and character depending upon the particular operation to be carried out, and a handle advantageously in the form of a block, secured to the tray as by frictional engagement with the sidewalls'and adapted to clamp the covering under tension around the tray.

According to' the invention furthermore, the supporting element may take the form of a metal tray, advantageously perforated or slotted to permit the flow of a polishing liquid, paint or the like on to the surface of the covering disposed beneath, and means provided for effecting a frictional, spring or snap-action engagement between the supporting element and the handle, 'which means are also effective to grip the covering under tension around the under-surface of the supporting element.

For the purpose the supporting element may be formed of a resilient metal such, for example, as aluminium sheet, and advantageously of rectangular form having vertical sides, separated at the corners and with the upper edges inwardly and downwardly turned for the application of the covering, which is tensioned by pressing into the supporting element, between the inwardly turned edges, a handle portion which is advantageously formed as a rectangular block of wood, plastic or the like, substantially to the same section as that of the supporting element and which in its downward movement frictionally engages the covering and pulls it over the inwardly turned edges of the walls of the supporting element so as to apply tension thereto to present a flat under-surface. The inwardly turned edges of the sides of the supporting element engage frictionally along substantially their whole length the sides of the block to prevent the withdrawal of the block.

The tray may be formed to any desired shape and/or curvature; thus to facilitate the cleaning or polishing of corners the tray or support may be curved or pointed at one or both ends. The tray may, if desired, be of semi-cylindrical shape with the end faces formed by inwardly extending radial strips to grip the covering at the ends as well as at the sides.

Furthermore in an alternative construction the supporting element may be provided imperforate for dipping the coveringinto polish or the like, or for the application of a covering to which a supply of polish has already been added.

The handle may be formed to accommodate a heating element and thermostat, for use with a supply of solid polishing material in the form of sticks or pellets, such for example as wax, which when heated and in molten state would operate to apply a greater thickness or coating of wax, than a cold diluted mixture of the sam substance.

Alternatively, the handle may be formed to house a container for a polishing or like liquid formed with a valve or the equivalent and adapted on the operation of control means such as a lever,'to force or release a supply of the liquid to pass onto or into the covering. The container may itself form the handle of the device.

According to the invention furthermore, the surfaces of the side walls of the handle may be roughened or otherwise provided to increase still further the frictional force between the walls of the block and the perimeter formed by the inwardly turned edges of the vertical sides of the supporting element.

According to the invention furthermore, a reservoir for the liquid to be applied may be provided between the covering material or the like and the outer surface of the flat supporting element, which reservoir may take the form of an absorbent sheet or the like.

According ,to the invention furthermore, means comprising an element having a smooth, hard, flat, slotted or. perforated surface is provided, the perforations in number and depth being so selected as to remove from the surface of the pad any surplus of polishing or like substances by the application and/or rubbing under pressure, of the pad over the. said means.

The pad may be used as a polisher, cleaner or abrader, in which case the material may be a fabric, sandpaper, emery paper, or the like.

'The' invention is diagrammatically illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the supporting element;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the handle;

Figure 3 is a cross-section of a pad according'to the invention;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of an alternative form of supporting element;

Figure 5 is a section through a modified construction of a pad according to the invention.

As illustrated in Figures 1 to 3, a pad comprises a supporting element which may be made of aluminium, or

like resilient metal, formed with a flat base 1, having perforations 2, substantially vertical end walls 3 and side walls 4. The end walls 3 and the side walls 4 are separated or cut from top to bottom at the corners at 5, and the side walls are formed with notches 6 in spaced relation, the notches extending from the top edge downwardly to a distance short of the base. Both end and side walls are formed with inwardly and downwardly inclined edges 7 and 8 respectively.

A handle, in the form of a wooden block 9, is provided with a hole 10 which extends through the block to join a cavity 10a in the undersurface thereof. Where the device is to be used for polishing, a polishing liquid may be poured into the hole 10 to run along the cavity 10a. Surrounding the supporting element to present a fiat surface covering on the under-surface of the base 1 is a fabric 11 with a reservoir for the liquid in the form of a sheet of cotton wool or the like 12 interposed between the outer surface of the base 1 and the fabric 11. The fabric 11 in preparing the pad for use is curled around the edges 7 and 8 of the supporting element so that on forcing the handle 9 downwardly between the inwardly turned inclined edges 7 and 8, the fabric is tensioned around the supporting element and a perfectly fiat unwrinkled and tensioned surface is presented for the workingoperation; a

It will thus be understood that the means of attachment between the supporting element and the handle serve also for securing the fabric or the material under tension on the supporting element.

Figure 4 illustrates a modified construction in which the metal supporting element 1 is of semi-cylindrical shape with inwardly inclined edges 13 to grip the covering and extending metal strips 14 forming end walls having inwardly inclined edges 15 which alsoserve to grip the covering. 7

In the construction illustrated in Figure 4, the supporting element 1 is provided with a handle of corresponding shape and form.

Figure illustrates a modified construction of the pad, in which the handle 9 is formed as a hollow casing to house a polishing or other liquid container 20 having its end formed with a closure 21. The closure 21 is provided with a valve 22 operable through a lever 23, the end of which projects through a slot 24 formed in the top of the casing, the slot being of dimensions such as to enable the valve-operating lever 23 to be moved respectively into the open and closed positions of the valve to allow the liquid to flow on to the covering. The closure 21 may be formed as a rubber cap.

Means may be applied to or formed on the block, for example, the application to the surfaces of the side and end walls of grit, or a series of grooves, to increase the friction, and thus to ensure that the block is firmly held within the metal supporting element.

It will be understood that in the pad according to the invention the covering is gripped around substantially the whole of the perimeter of the handle irrespective of the shape or form of the handle.

If the pad is charged with liquid, means are, according to the invention, provided for removing any surplus from the polishing surface of thepad. The said means may comprise a smooth, flat, hard sheetfor example, a rectangular sheetof metal, or wood or of a plastic which is perforated, the pad being rubbed on the perforated sheet under pressure to remove surplus liquid and to condition the surface of the fabric applied on the pad for use.

The sheet may be formed to dimensions representing an area 1" longer each way than the corresponding dimensions of the pad, andhaving a thickness of A3 or more or less, with circular holes of a diameter of A" spaced about A" apart at the edges. It has been found that such means are effective for adjusting the optimum quantity of French polish, cellulose pullover, liquid waxes and the like on the operative surface of the pad.

I claim:

1. A polishing pad comprising a supporting element with a perforated under surface having inwardly turned, yieldable side and end portions, said side portions being separated from said end portions at the corners thereof, a fabric adapted to fit over the under surface of said supporting element and to be wrapped over said side and end portions, and a block having a shape and size corresponding to the supporting element and adapted to engage the inwardly turned side and end portions of said element and the fabric wrapped thereover whereby said block effects a spring fit with the supporting element and holds the fabric between the edges of the inwardly turned side and end portions of the supporting element and the block, said block having a cavity adjacent the perforated under surface to form a reservoir for a polishing compound and means in the block communicating said reservoir with the upper surface thereof.

2. A polishing pad according to claim 1 in which the sides of the block are provided with a plurality of grooves to increase the frictional contact between the block and the fabric.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,565,608 Walsh Dec. 15, 1925 1,764,559 Glen June 17, 1930 1,938,811 Cook et al. Dec. 12, 1933 2,029,426 Kingdon Feb. 4, 1936 2,089,911 Replogle Aug. 10, 1937 2,300,684 Maxfield Nov. 3, 1942 2,527,089 Adams Oct. 24, 1950 2,560,008 Steward July 10, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS v 13,148/33 Australia June 21, 1934 121,064 Switzerland June 16, 1927 

